The Socioeconomic Drivers of Ethical Food Consumption in Ecuador: A Quantitative Analysis

Abstract

A significant body of research has analyzed the socioeconomic determinants of ethical consumption, nevertheless, most of those studies have been conducted in high-income countries. With data from a survey with national representation (n = 11,526), this study aimed at analyzing the socioeconomic factors shaping decisions of ethical consumption in Ecuador, a middle-income country, where agroecological production has been proposed as a strategy to reduce rural poverty while promoting sustainable agriculture. Price is the principal purchasing criterion for 78% of the households in the sample, while ecological/organic label and support to local farmers account for 11 and 3% of the sample, respectively. Brand is the principal buying criterion for 8% of the sample. Consistent with prior research, the results of a multinomial probit regression show that ecological consumers are statistically likely to be wealthier and more educated than their price-driven counterparts. Contrary to the findings of previous research in Ecuador, ecological consumers do exhibit environmental awareness. Those with support to local producers as their main purchasing driver are also featured by high levels of wealth and education, nevertheless, they are not as concerned about the environment as their ecological counterparts. The implications of these findings for policy are explored in the Discussion section.

An Empirical Investigation of Ethical Food Choices: A Qualitative Research Approach

“…Our results further support the previous literature on the values and motives driving ethical food choice, stating individual's health [18], environmental protection and sustainability [5,9,19,20], and social welfare [19,21] as the key axes of ethical consumption.…”

“…These have contributed to the urgent need for enhancing sustainable development and the necessity for efficient coordination between governance and international societal systems [2]. Since modern food systems are estimated to produce about a third of global greenhouse gas emissions [3], there is an ever-increasing interest in ethical issues in agricultural production and the food industry with consumers becoming more environmentally conscious and susceptible to the social impacts of agro-food production [4,5]. In addition, the rapid technological development of recent decades and the modern consumer lifestyle in the western world have brought to the forefront new ethical dilemmas and concerns [6,7].…”

“…In addition, the rapid technological development of recent decades and the modern consumer lifestyle in the western world have brought to the forefront new ethical dilemmas and concerns [6,7]. Therefore, the interlinkage of agriculture with environment, food seasonality and locality, farmers and employees' rights, animal welfare, and the protection of local businesses seem to have a crucial role in establishing ethical consumer's food choices and purchase behaviors [5,8,9].…”

Influencia De La Agricultura en La Economía Y Su Contraste Frente a Los Objetivos De Desarrollo Sostenible: Caso Ecuador

“…En términos generales, al contrastar los resultados obtenidos de la presencia de la agricultura en el Ecuador frente a algunos ODS, inicialmente cabe recalcar que, en el Ecuador, el sector de la agricultura se encuentra principalmente en las zonas rurales (Lanjouw, 1999). Por lo cual, el ODS 1 -Fin de la pobreza se encuentra ligado, debido a que en la ruralidad del país se presentan altos índices de vulnerabilidad que son necesarios contrarrestar mediante estrategias de producción sustentables (Vasco et al, 2022). El Ecuador ha demostrado tener un potencial agrícola de autoabastecimiento y complementariedad (Alarcón & Lema, 2023).…”